CALGARY – There was no such thing as “a ba-a-a-d hair day” for the 200 sheep who submitted to 10 professional sheep shearers at the Calgary Stampede.
This year’s professional sheep shearing contest was the first time such an event was staged at the Stampede.
It drew its share of onlookers who watched as the contestants grabbed 200 pound ewes and with a minimum of struggle, flipped them over and removed about eight pounds of fleece.
Competitors came from Canada, United States and New Zealand, but the winner was from Saskatche-wan. Clifford Metheral of Nokomis earned 351.38 points out of a possible 400 followed by five-time world champion Bruce Sellers of the United States at 347.46.
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These are timed events where each competitor shears a minimum of 16 sheep. While they were allowed six minutes per sheep, most of the pros can clip one animal in just over one minute.
Assessment made
Three judges assess their speed, absence of cuts to the sheep, appearance of the shorn sheep and condition of the fleece when it’s removed. The belly wool is removed as one small piece and the rest of the fleece should come off in one section and spread out like a blanket once it’s off the sheep.
Six sheep were clipped per round.
At the end of the competition, $2,500 in first place money along with a new set of knives and clippers were presented to the top shearer.
